Tag: understanding the times (Emmett Smith III)

Understanding the Times

efsmith, May 26, 2002 at 1:59:00 PM BST

By Emmett Smith

In 1 Chronicles 12:32, the statement is made that 200 men from the tribe of Issachar, “which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do,” joined David in Hebron for his coronation as King of Israel. Any nation needs leaders who understand the times, thus knowing what to do. Throughout history, leaders who have understood their times and have been willing to heed wise advice from others with understanding have blessed those under their authority. And vice versa.

In the church as well, there is a need for those who understand the times. And gaining this understanding is not something that happens accidentally, nor is it possible without Biblical knowledge. As Job said in Job 28:28, “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” And as the Psalmist said in Psalms 111:10, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.” Without God, understanding is impossible. He is the source, the wellspring, of true knowledge. But there’s also a source of knowledge “falsely so called”.

In Acts 17, Paul spoke to the Athenians on Mars’ Hill. They are described in verse 21 as having insatiable appetites for news -– they spent their time in nothing else but telling or hearing of some new thing. The Athenians were also very religious (verse 22), but were ignorant of the one true God. Things haven’t changed all that much since then, have they? We have our CNN, CNBC, Fox, ABC, CBS, radio, newspapers, online news, etc. But what of lasting value do we learn from such sources?

In today’s world, there is a tremendous effort being made to instill certain ideas in people’s minds. In the educational establishment from Kindergarten through Ph.D. In the news media. On prime time television. And in the church. Unfortunately, the ideas being pushed in the world are in direct conflict with those in the church. It’s always been that way. Just as the Athenians were ignorant of God, so is much of our world today. And many are willingly ignorant (2 Peter 3:5).

Even some who consider themselves Christians are obviously ignorant of the Bible’s teachings on these issues. Could that be because they spend less time reading the Bible than reading the newspaper or watching TV? Or perhaps they’ve just decided the world is right and the Bible is wrong. Paul exhorted the Ephesians to “redeem the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16.) Then, in verse 17, he said, “be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”

If we’ll concentrate on understanding the Lord’s will, we’ll be less likely to try to compromise with the world’s ideas. Remember, those ideas ARE in conflict with God’s will. Don’t let the evil one fool you.

" Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?" (1 Corinthians 1:20).

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him" (James 1:5).

Innocent Blood

efsmith, May 19, 2002 at 1:47:00 PM BST

by Emmett Smith

According to some sources, an ancient Chinese curse was invoked by the phrase “may you live in interesting times”. It’s my contention that we certainly live in interesting times these days. As just one example, let’s look at the recent history of abortion, or “choice” as some insist we call it. Lord willing, we’ll examine some more examples in weeks to come.

There was a time when Christians might have been able to justify (rationalize, if you will) abortion. In 1973, when Roe v Wade was handed down, there was much discussion regarding just when life actually begins. Some (including me, I’m ashamed to say) found that they could justify the excision of a simple early-term “lump of tissue” as opposed to a full-term baby. The language we use in these discussions is also interesting: fetus or embryo rather than child or baby; choice rather than abortion or, more properly, murder. But today, with late-term abortion common, I submit that we as Christians have no remaining rationalizations regarding this issue. I don’t really think we ever had.

According to Proverbs 6:16-19, “These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.” Note the phrase in red. I’d hate to be an abortionist, wouldn’t you?

One of the more interesting tactics of certain anti-abortion groups lately is the publication of graphic depictions of actual aborted fetuses. The resulting uproar in the media by so-called “pro-choice” advocates has been interesting, to say the least. They recognize that if people ever actually see what they so zealously advocate for what it actually is – butchery – then public support for such policies will evaporate. Even they must be disturbed by graphic evidence that their little “choices” actually have fingers, toes, ears, hair, and blood.

Another scripture of interest is Psalm 106:37-38, “Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.” Amazing isn’t it? The Israelites, in the depths of their moral decline, actually offered their own children as sacrifices to idols. And the land was polluted ...

What idols do we sacrifice our children to? That extra paycheck, that new car, or boat, or time to yourself, or (you fill in the blank)? Think about it. The slaughter of literally millions of unborn children each year since 1973 isn’t the only travesty of our times, is it? The casualties of abortion are deprived of physical life here and now. But what about the casualties of parental negligence? What if we gain those material extras, but lose our souls? What if we sacrifice the souls of our children?

Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

The Great Physician

efsmith, May 12, 2002 at 2:58:00 PM BST

A May 7th article about antidepressants in the Washington Post online cited some interesting data. Pharmaceutical companies pursuing FDA approval of their antidepressant medications must provide data supporting the claimed benefits. A comparison of patients who are given the antidepressant versus a control group who are given placebos (sugar pills) is standard procedure.

According to the article, the majority of such studies in the past few decades has revealed two things - that antidepressants work, and that sugar pills work just as well, if not better. Many patients who received placebos showed results indistinguishable from those who received antidepressants. But when these patients were told, after the study, that they had been taking placebos, their condition quickly deteriorated.

Obviously, what we believe has an impact on how we feel. Further, what we believe has an impact on how we live. Jesus told Martha "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." Then He asked her the kicker - Martha, do you believe this?

That question is an appropriate one for our times as well. Remember what happened in the few years after Christ’s death? Paul and his companions “turned the world upside down”! He told the Colossians the gospel had been preached “in all creation under heaven”. David Lipscomb’s comment on this phenomenon was “It seems strange that the gospel had been preached among all the nations; but, if we consider the earnest character of the Christians, who gloried in persecutions and death for Christ's sake, it will not seem so strange. The greatest hindrance to the gospel in our day is the lukewarm and indifferent character of professed Christians.”

Think about it. How different would the world be today if our belief in the Great Physician was as motivating as those placebos mentioned earlier? Jesus told the Laodiceans to anoint their eyes with salve so that they could see their true condition. In the midst of material abundance, they were spiritually bankrupt. So here we are, in the most prosperous era in human history materially, and still we’re depressed in record numbers.

Where’s the joy so often mentioned in the New Testament, even in sometimes bitterly difficult circumstances? It is one of the fruits of the Spirit isn’t it? How many of our modern day maladies are really spiritual in nature? Perhaps we had better seek out some eye salve.

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Emmett comes on board

randal, May 8, 2002 at 12:07:00 PM BST

Forthright is privileged to welcome on board this happy ship Emmett Smith III. You can now read his full bio here.

Emmett will write on Sundays in the column "Understanding the Times." I'm really looking forward to it. He always has thoughtful and careful things to say.

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